This year, the arts world saw hundreds of gallons of rain fall without touching those beneath it, while a few drops of acid shook the ballet world. On the entertainment side, Jennifer Lawrence tripped and earned a place as America's relatable new sweetheart. And as usual, the year began and ended with Beyonce on top.
This story appears the special Year in Photos issue of our weekly iPad magazine, Huffington, available Friday, Dec. 27 in the iTunes App store.
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Queen Bey 01.21.2013
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2013 was bookended by Beyonce's accomplishments. The artist sang the National Anthem at President Barack Obama's inauguration in January, and released a new album with no pre-release announcement in December. The latter hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and the digital-only album broke the iTunes record for first-week sales in the U.S.
Banksy Takes New York, October 2013
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British street artist, Banksy completed a month-long artist residency on the streets of New York in October titled "Better Out Than In." The project saw the anonymous artist, who has never formally been identified, unveil a form of artwork somewhere in the five boroughs daily.
Rubber Duck, 01.05.13
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Visitors in a traditional pavilion take photos of a giant yellow rubber duck created by Dutch artist Florentijn Hofman floating on a Kunming Lake at the Summer Palace in Beijing. Different versions of the duck popped up throughout the world in 2013, from Azerbaijan to Taiwan.
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Daft Punk Returns 05.17.13
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French electronic music duo Daft Punk returned in 2013, releasing their first new album in eight years, Random Access Memories. The lead single, "Get Lucky," featuring Pharrell Williams, became a huge international success and one of the most popular songs of the year.
Bacon's Big Seller, 11.12.13
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A member of Christie's staff walks towards Francis Bacon's "Three Studies of Lucien Freud." The work became the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction at $142.4 million.
The Royal Baby, 10.23.13
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Prince William and Kate Middleton arrive with their son Prince George of Cambridge at Chapel Royal in St James's Palace, ahead of the christening of the three month-old prince, which was born to much fanfare on July 22.
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Jodie Foster's Speech, 01.13.13
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Jodi Foster made waves when she accepted the Cecil B. Demille Award at this year's Golden Globes, and gave a meandering, emotional speech in which she spoke about the importance of privacy, casually came out, and hinted at retirement.
J-Law's Fall, 02.24.13
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Actress Jennifer Lawrence stumbled and fell as she walked on stage to accept the award for best actress in a leading role for Silver Linings Playbook during the Oscars. When she got a standing ovation from the crowd, Lawrence responded, "You guys are just standing up because you feel bad that I fell — it's really embarrassing." The fall was the beginning of a series of moments that endeared Lawrence to Americans.
The Rain Room, 05.15.13
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Visitors gather in the "Rain Room" installation at the Museum of Modern Art. The 5,000 square-foot installation creates a field of falling water that stops in the area where people walk through, allowing them to remain dry. The piece, created by Random International, releases a 260-gallon per minute shower around visitors. Wait times for the installation reached eight hours.
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Acid Attack, 09.17.13
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The Bolshoi Ballet's Artistic Director Sergei Filin (left), who was the victim of a horrific acid attack in January, attends a meeting of the company in the Bolshoi Theatre. Filin was walking to his apartment when his masked attacker hurled sulfuric acid at him, leaving him nearly blinded, with severe burns. Bolshoi star dancer Pavel Dmitrichenko was given six years in prison for spearheading the attack, accomplice Yuri Zarutsky was given 10 years and driver Andrei Lipatov got four.